Who owns our knowledge? ILRI’s commitment to open access in livestock research for development
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23.10.25
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As the world marks International Open Access Week 2025 (20–26 October), the theme “Who Owns Our Knowledge?” invites us to reflect on the ownership, accessibility, and equity of scholarly research knowledge and information.
In a time of global disruption and digital transformation, this theme challenges institutions to reassert community control over the knowledge they produce and share.
At the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), open access is more than a publishing policy; it’s a principle that underpins our mission to contribute towards better lives and a better planet through livestock research in developing countries.
ILRI’s Open Access journey
From 2010, when ILRI’s management committee adopted the ILRI strategy on research publishing, the institute has been at the forefront of making its research outputs and data resources openly accessible, guided by the belief that its research outputs are global public goods and, as such, should be freely available and accessible.
In line with this strategy, ILRI research and information products are openly available under Creative Commons licenses.
This has enhanced the accessibility, reach, and impact of ILRI’s work, fostered cross-disciplinary collaboration, enabled the uptake and reuse of information, and curated content for institutional memory.
ILRI adheres to the FAIR Guiding Principles for scientific data management and stewardship, published in Scientific Data in 2016, ensuring that digital assets are Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.
These include publications, datasets, software, and multimedia content, hosted on robust platforms such as the CGSpace repository, open data resources, and source code on GitHub.
Empowering researchers and communities
ILRI encourages its researchers and graduate fellows to publish in reputable open access journals and index their outputs in CGSpace.
While article processing charges for journal articles can be a barrier, ILRI supports budgeting for these costs in project proposals.
Many funders have adopted Open Access policies that enable the unrestricted access and reuse of outputs from research that they fund, including any underlying data sets.
ILRI also provides guidance to scientists to avoid predatory publishers and ensures that externally published outputs retain open licenses whenever possible.
This commitment extends to ILRI’s partners, consultants, and collaborators, ensuring that the knowledge generated through collaborative research is openly available and accessible.
Open Access as a pathway to equity
In line with this year’s Open Access Week theme, ILRI recognizes that ownership of knowledge must be inclusive.
Open Access ensures that farmers, students, academicians, researchers, development practitioners, and policymakers can benefit from equitable access to scientific knowledge and information.
Open Access also democratizes research knowledge and information and empowers communities to co-create and share solutions to the global challenges of our day, such as antimicrobial resistance, climate change, emerging infectious diseases, and food insecurity.
As we celebrate Open Access Week 2025, ILRI reaffirms its commitment to transparency, equity, and collaboration in its research endeavors.
Through open platforms, policies, and partnerships, we can continue to ensure that our livestock research knowledge is truly owned by all.
Photo: Participants at a livestock and fish workshop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (credit: ILRI/Apollo Habtamu)
Written by Tezira Lore, Communication Officer, ILRI
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